£350m spent, zero goals: What is going wrong for Tottenham under De Zerbi?

Tottenham Hotspur person spent much than £350m rebuilding Roberto De Zerbi's squad, but 3 Premier League matches into the season, they are inactive waiting for their archetypal goal.

Saturday's 0-0 gully distant to Nottingham Forest astatine slightest delivered Spurs' archetypal constituent of the campaign.

However, the effect besides extended a worrying attacking run.

Tottenham failed to registry a azygous changeable connected people astatine the City Ground and person present gone 3 league matches without scoring.

It is the archetypal clip successful Premier League past that Spurs person failed to find the nett successful their opening 3 games of a season, portion they had not made specified a goalless commencement to a league run since 1974-75.

For a nine that invested heavy during the summer, the opposition is hard to ignore.

Why are Tottenham struggling successful the last third?

De Zerbi does not look to judge that Tottenham's problems are purely structural.

The Italian was encouraged by parts of the show against Forest, peculiarly aft antecedently criticising his broadside for losing excessively galore duels and 2nd balls against Brentford.

His main interest alternatively centred connected decision-making successful attacking areas.

Highlights: Nottingham Forest 0-0 Spurs ? pic.twitter.com/HqKfmQroRs

Omar Marmoush provided the clearest example.

The erstwhile Manchester City guardant had 3 attempts and missed a large opportunity, but De Zerbi was much frustrated by 1 juncture erstwhile helium chose to sprout alternatively than usage teammates successful amended positions.

"I deliberation we played well, but we person to play amended successful the last third," De Zerbi said.

"We person to marque amended decisions.

"For example, successful the accidental with Marmoush, erstwhile helium shoots, we person Robertson going forward. If we had played Robertson in, Kudus would person been escaped connected the different side."

That series sums up 1 of Tottenham's early-season problems.

The attacking endowment is there, but the combinations are not yet functioning consistently enough.

New players are inactive learning 1 another's movements, and Spurs person not established the patterns required to crook promising situations into wide chances.

Is Tottenham's £350m rebuild already a concern?

There is an evident temptation to justice the summertime spending against contiguous results.

More than £350m has been committed to strengthening De Zerbi's squad, and the anticipation aft specified an outlay is people high.

Yet 3 matches stay a precise tiny illustration size.

Tottenham are inactive adapting to a new-look squad and a antithetic attacking structure, portion De Zerbi is attempting to found his preferred style.

The Forest show did astatine slightest connection signs of advancement successful different areas.

Spurs competed amended physically and showed much aggression successful duels, addressing 1 of the coach's complaints from the decision to Brentford.

The contented is that nary of those improvements volition substance overmuch if the squad continues to deficiency condemnation astir the punishment area.

Marmoush has already recovered himself astatine the centre of that debate, but the work is wider than 1 player.

Tottenham request sharper movement, quicker decisions and amended coordination betwixt their attacking options.

Until that arrives, the numbers volition proceed to pull attention.

Three games, nary goals and much than £350m spent is an uncomfortable combination, adjacent astatine this aboriginal signifier of the season.

Tottenham are adjacent already facing decisions implicit whether further attacking concern volition beryllium required, with Mykhaylo Mudryk's semipermanent aboriginal among the questions inactive to beryllium resolved.

De Zerbi inactive has clip to marque the rebuild work, but the unit to find an attacking solution volition lone summation if Tottenham gully different blank.